It’s been three years since Hurricane Florence and related flooding wreaked havoc on the Fayetteville area. Not only can hurricanes cause major damage in areas with key transportation infrastructure, they can cause service-interrupting problems of which local authorities are not even aware as Florence showed.

Thanks to a recent $5,000 grant from CSX Transportation, Cumberland County Emergency Management will have another tool at its disposal to see what kind of damage has been caused to vital infrastructure.

In this case, the funds will go toward a damage assessment drone.

“The drone’s goal is to enhance the County’s ability to assess damage to infrastructure and homes after disasters happen,” according to a new release from Cumberland County.

It will also help first responders with search and rescue operations.

The drone has a thermal imaging camera, high visibility strobe light, and a loudspeaker for communicating instructions to victims or responders, county emergency officials said. 

 “This drone will provide an additional way to support our community as well as our first responders before, during and after disasters,” said Cumberland County Emergency Management Coordinator Garry Crumpler. “Our goal is to find new and innovative ways to respond to emergencies and improve the safety of our citizens.”

With hurricane season ongoing, residents can get the latest emergency information by signing up for the Cumberland alerts notification system, which provides the latest information on severe weather, evacuations, protective actions, etc. 

Sign-up now by visiting cumberlandcountync.gov/alerts.